Prayer F — Nullifying Sadness of Spirit

Source — Prayer on Rising in the Morning and Netilas Yadayim.

Sing to Hashem, His devout ones, and give thanks at the mention of His holiness. For His anger is but a moment; life is in His favor; in the evening weeping lodges, but in the morning, song. Lift up your hands in holiness and bless Hashem. Let us lift up our heart with our palms to God in Heaven. Master of the Universe, have mercy upon me, that I merit to lift my hands to You at every time and to fulfill: “I spread out my hands to You; my soul is like a weary land for You, Selah.”

Master of the Universe, You know the greatness of sadness of spirit that overpowers me at every time, always, and especially at night, when the ruach ha-dofek, the spirit of the pulse, does not blow so strongly, and the movements of the limbs become heavy; through this, sadness of spirit comes. Its chief strengthening is through the hands, for I cannot lift my hands to You and explain my speech before You. Now teach me and instruct me how to enliven myself and nullify sadness of spirit from me.

Master of the Universe, You have informed me through Your true tzaddikim that every one of Israel has an aspect of malchus, through which he can rule over all those under his rule, each one according to the aspect of malchus he possesses. The essence of the completeness of malchus is through length of days, the aspect of da’as and chassadim.

At night the dinim become strong, until the malchus of each person becomes diminished through the concealment of da’as. Therefore the malchus of kedushah that each one of Israel has becomes diminished and descends among the lower beings, and through this, sadness of the hands is drawn. Therefore at night, Heaven forbid, the sitra achra takes hold specifically of the hands, in the aspect of sadness of the hands.

Therefore help me and grant me merit to refine and purify the hands through netilas yadayim immediately when I awaken from my sleep, and through netilas yadayim with water to draw the waters of da’as and chassadim. Through this may the malchus that I have, according to my aspect, be built, until I merit to accept upon myself the yoke of kingship in completeness, and to subdue and drive away the evil and the kelipos that cling to me through my many sins.

Master of the Universe, You know how many blemishes I have blemished in the malchus that is within me, in my soul, by going after the stubbornness of my heart, until sadness of the hands has become very strong upon me. I cannot lift my hands to You, speak words of truth before You, or explain my speech and the bitterness of my soul before You; so much so that through this my hands have become very heavy, and I have no rule even over myself, to turn my heart to You in truth.

Have mercy upon me, that through netilas yadayim when I awaken from my sleep I merit to purify my hands, and to draw and enlarge my malchus through length of days, which comes through occupation with Torah; may I merit to learn every single morning. Through Torah study may I merit length of days, to draw length of days into the malchus that I have.

May I merit to rebuke myself every single day, and to accept upon myself every day the yoke of the kingship of Heaven in completeness, until I merit to lift my hands to God Most High. May I clarify the good from the evil, and fulfill the verse that is written: “Remove dross from silver”; “Remove a wicked one from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness.”

May I thereby merit, through netilas yadayim, to draw da’as and length of days into the malchus of kedushah. May I merit to reveal the concealments, and to drive away and nullify the kelipos and the evil that obscure and conceal holiness. Through this may I merit to add strength and power to the malchus of kedushah, until I can rebuke myself each day and speak to my soul: What will be the end of me, and until when will the old and foolish king overpower me?

May I ask and supplicate before You that You take me out from servitude to freedom, until I merit that the malchus of kedushah that exists in every one of Israel be free; that kingship return to its place; that You, Hashem our God, reign over all Your works; that You drive the slave away from kingship; and that the maidservant flee before her mistress.

Through this may we merit to rebuke the souls that are under each one of Israel, according to the aspect of malchus that he possesses; to return them to holiness; and to take them out from all kinds of concealments, and from all concealments within concealment. The Torah that we merit to learn every morning and throughout the day will rebuke them, and they will hear the voice of the Torah rebuking them with a great voice: “How long, simple ones, will you love simplicity?” Then they will be awakened in truth to Hashem Yisbarach through the voice of the holy Torah, until the malchus of kedushah is magnified in the world.

Through this may I merit to put on tefillin every single day in holiness, so that da’as is drawn from the hands to the mochin, which are the aspect of tefillin, until I draw length of days into malchus. May I merit to say Krias Shema and to accept upon myself the yoke of the kingship of Heaven with love, and to say the verse, “Shema Yisrael, Hashem Elokainu, Hashem echad,” in holiness, and to make known to the whole world that even within all the concealments, they all receive life-force from Hashem Yisbarach, and no place is empty of Him at all.

May I merit to prolong the dalet of echad, through which we merit length of days, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: one must lengthen the dalet of echad; this is what is written: “That he may lengthen days over his kingdom.” May I merit length of days and years, to draw da’as into malchus, and may the verse be fulfilled: “Saviors will ascend Mount Tziyon to judge the mountain of Esav, and kingship will be Hashem’s”; “Hashem will be King over all the earth; on that day Hashem will be one, and His Name one.” Blessed is Hashem forever. Amen and amen.

Master of the Universe, grant me merit to go every day to a kosher mikveh, to immerse myself before prayer, and through immersion in the mikveh to draw upon myself supernal da’as and great chassadim that are drawn from the mikveh of Shavuos. Through this may the malchus of kedushah be completed with truly great completeness, through the holiness of the mikveh of Shavuos, which is supernal chesed and great mercies.

All this will be drawn upon us through the Torah of the true tzaddikim, for through their holy Torah they draw upon us chassadim and supernal da’as, until we merit to know that You are found within every kind of concealment; and we merit to leave all kinds of concealments; and we merit to know in truth that You are supreme over all the earth, and Your kingship rules over all.

May it be fulfilled: “Hashem is King forever and ever; the nations have perished from His land.” May we merit to make known Your emunah and Your malchus from generation to generation, for Your malchus is the kingship of all worlds and Your dominion is in every generation, and to return them in complete teshuvah; for Hashem is good, His kindness is forever, and His faithfulness is to generation after generation. Hashem will reign forever. Amen and amen.

Translator’s Addition — Summary of Prayer F: The prayer connects morning netilas yadayim with the nullification of sadness of spirit and “sadness of the hands.” At night the dinim become strong and the malchus of kedushah is diminished; through netilas yadayim, the waters of da’as and chassadim are drawn, and malchus is rebuilt. From there a wider repair unfolds: Torah study that rebukes and awakens, tefillin and Krias Shema that draw da’as into malchus, and the mikveh before prayer that draws supernal da’as and great chassadim.

Translator’s Addition — Diagram for Prayer F. Washing withwater → Da’as &chassadim → Malchusrebuilt → Torahrebuke → Tefillin &Shema → Mikveh &teshuvah